Tedford Housing

Empowering people to move from homelessness to home.

Giving Voice: Staying warm amid the heating season

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This article was published in the Times Record on 02/12/2021, and written by Blaine Flanders, Community & Donor Relations Coordinator at Tedford Housing. You can read the article on the Times Record here.

BRUNSWICK – Many Mainers are bundled in a blanket on the couch, turning up the heat, and occasionally sipping on something warm. But for some, the winter does not look so warm and cozy. For some, the winter looks like a choice between paying rent or affording heat. Perhaps some households know the value of a warm home after shoveling in sub-zero temperatures with no gloves. Unfortunately, many Mainers are at high-risk for not being able to heat their homes during the frigid winter months.  

Around New England, several states have heating assistance programs, and many households in Maine take advantage of the Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP), which is available to qualifying households through local Community Action Agencies. General assistance offices as well as some town-sponsored heating assistance programs also aid those in need. Tedford Housing’s Warm Thy Neighbor program is unique in that it is a fully donor-funded program that provides emergency heating assistance between November and March to those in the program’s catchment area.  

Warm Thy Neighbor was established in 2004 by Sallie Smith. Sallie dedicated years of time and effort to ensure the success of the Warm Thy Neighbor program. In October 2010, Smith transferred the Warm Thy Neighbor program to Tedford Housing when operations and need became too large. Sallie is a long-time supporter of Tedford Housing and she currently sits on Tedford’s Marketing & Development Committee.   

Freezing temperatures bring frozen hands and frozen feet. Tedford Housing’s Warm Thy Neighbor program provides heating assistance to approximately 125 households during one heating season, warming the feet and hands of over 248 people. Currently, six loyal volunteers, supported by Tedford’s staff, work with Warm Thy Neighbor clients to ensure fuel is delivered to those in need. These six dedicated volunteers have been volunteering with this program for over five years, and continue to donate their time to ensure hundreds of people can warm their homes. Tedford Housing is grateful for these individuals who are committed to this program and our mission.  

COVID-19 has changed how Warm Thy Neighbor is implemented this year, by halting all in-person meetings and requiring paper-work drop-offs allow staff and volunteers to minimize contact and keep clients safe. Despite the change, Warm Thy Neighbor continues to field requests for heating assistance as neighborhood households struggle to afford heat in the midst of the pandemic, all while balancing the burden of rent, bills, and putting food on the table.  

At Tedford Housing, we understand the need for heating assistance, and how paramount the program is to keeping people in their homes. Warm Thy Neighbor is a vital homeless prevention and outreach program, and many of those on the brink of homelessness utilize this emergency fund as a vital resource. Tedford Housing is proud to offer this program to so many households and individuals in our community, and appreciate the broad community support for this program. A generous anonymous donor gifted Tedford $25,000 as a matching gift this heating season, and the community is stepping up to help us reach that goal. Don’t let someone have to choose this winter between paying for food or having a warm home. 

To apply for Warm Thy Neighbor heating assistance, please call (207)729-1161 ext.115, or for more information about Tedford Housing or with any questions, please email blaine@tedfordhousing.org.

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Giving Voice is a weekly collaboration among four local non-profit service agencies to share information and stories about their work in the community. 

Giving Voice: Raising awareness and holiday cheer

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This article was published in the Times Record on November 13, 2020 and written by Blaine Flanders, the Community & Donor Relations Coordinator at Tedford Housing. Find the newspaper article here.

Around the Brunswick area, community members are beginning to gear up for the upcoming holidays. Shops put items on sale, donors are engaging their charities and nonprofits are busier than ever. During this holiday season, Tedford Housing staff also become busier than normal in order to accommodate the influx in community engagement, but more importantly, the increase in need as the months grow colder.

In order to combat the rising need during the colder months, Tedford Housing has decided to recognize National Hunger & Homelessness Awareness Week from Nov. 15-22 to raise awareness in the community for Tedford Housing and our mission. Individuals and families, now more than ever, need community support due to the pandemic and winter quickly approaching. The goal of this awareness week is to awaken the community to the growing need among our neighbors.

Throughout National Hunger & Homelessness Awareness Week, Tedford Housing is hosting multiple pandemic-friendly events. On Nov. 16, Community Awareness Day, look for “We Support Tedford Housing” signs around the community. These signs have been staked by some of Tedford’s business supporters who are committed to our mission. Two Days of Action, on Nov. 20 and 21, will engage a few loyal volunteers in the community to rake leaves at the emergency family shelter and sort donations before the holidays.

Tedford Housing is partnering with Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program for two of the week’s events, including Advocacy Day and the Q&A Session with Executive Directors Rota Knott and Karen Parker. Advocacy Day, on Nov. 18, is a chance to make your voice heard. Anyone in the community can request and send these pre-paid postcards. The back of the postcard says, “Did you know it is National Hunger & Homelessness Awareness Week?”, in order to stimulate conversation and awareness to whomever the card is sent. If you would like to request postcards, please email blaine@tedfordhousing.org. The Q&A video will be available on social media on November 19th to answer all of the questions asked over the past few weeks.

Despite the warm weather that was here this week, Thanksgiving is still right around the corner. Tedford Housing is partnering with the Brunswick Rotary Club and Pathway Vineyard Church, in Brunswick and Lewiston, to gift holiday cheer among Tedford’s individual and family clients. Both the Brunswick Rotary Club and Pathway Vineyard Church have been long-term supporters of Tedford’s holiday gifting program, and have made a real impact on our clients and guests the past several years. Rotary members donate gift cards to each of Tedford’s individuals so they can purchase food for Thanksgiving, while parishioners create Thanksgiving Bags for Tedford’s families to cook their own meal.

Last month, Beci Turner, a Tedford supporter, sponsored a holiday gifting drive for Tedford’s families through Usborne Books. All of the money raised will purchase books that will be gifted to children of all ages this Christmas. The books will be distributed during the Christmas Store held in early December that is hosted by Pathway Vineyard Church in Brunswick. The Christmas Store hosts not only Tedford’s family households, but other families in the community. Tedford Housing’s families who benefit from this Christmas Store include those living at the emergency family shelter, in supportive housing, and those receiving outreach services. Pathway has always made a great impact on families throughout the community by allowing each member of the family to “shop” at the store and select items to gift other family members. Watching families who are experiencing homelessness hand-select unique gifts for their children and loved ones is a magical experience. The Marine Toys for Tots Foundation and The Emergency Action Network have graciously donated gifts to the Christmas Store this year. To help Tedford’s families this Christmas, please visit our website or social media for more information on holiday gifting.Advertisement

As the months get colder, many of us tend to think of the holidays, but for some members of the community this time of year brings anxious questions of, “What if I don’t have enough clothing to keep me warm tonight?” or “Where is the warmest place to sleep outside in this town?” Help us change that conversation by raising awareness in our community. Community engagement and partnerships strengthen Tedford Housing’s mission to empower people to move from homelessness to home. Tedford appreciates those who are already involved in the conversation, and we look forward to those who will join us next.–

There are several more strong connections not mentioned above that Tedford has in the community, and we appreciate everyone who currently supports our organization and our mission. For any questions about Tedford Housing’s community engagement, volunteering, or making a gift, please contact me at blaine@tedfordhousing.org or call (207)729-1161 ext. 101.

Giving Voice: How community connections are making a direct impact on those experiencing homelessness

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Published in the Times Record on 10/16/2020 and written by Blaine Flanders, Tedford Housing’s Community & Donor Relations Coordinator. Find the article online here.

This year has been difficult for everyone in the community, but even more challenging for those experiencing homelessness. Not only are those experiencing homelessness battling hurdles to find permanent housing, but their regular hurdles have become mountains due to COVID-19. One of the most impactful opportunities for the community is to support local organizations that target those specific hurdles. Services like case management and homeless prevention and outreach are tailored to support, develop, and empower those experiencing homelessness in the community.

Despite every challenge that those experiencing homelessness face, the guests at Tedford Housing can now rejoice at the sight of fresh paint, new mattresses and a new, clean place for personal belongings. The Brunswick Coastal Rotary (BCR) had graciously donated grant funds and volunteers to paint and assemble new beds, mattresses and lockers for the dormitory rooms, as well as paint and assemble new furniture for the shelter’s community living room. A group of dedicated Rotarians continue to focus their time and efforts to address housing issues locally and around the world. This project falls directly in-line with their realm of interest and support for community programs. Jim Pierce, president of the Brunswick Coastal Rotary, was enthusiastic about Rotarians focusing their efforts on a local organization that assists people experiencing homelessness and those that are on the brink of homelessness.

Rota Knott, executive director of Tedford Housing, noted, “We appreciate the long-standing relationship with and support of the Brunswick Coastal Rotary for Tedford Housing’s mission. We were very excited to work with the club members to renovate the guest rooms and community room at the Adult Shelter. They really went the extra mile to help us ensure that our guests have a not just safe and secure emergency housing, but also a comfortable place to rest while they are engaged in our shelter program. Community partnerships like this one with the Brunswick Coastal Rotary are integral to Tedford’s work.”

Guest dormitory with new bunks, lockers, and freshly painted walls.

For five days, Rotarians cleaned, patched, painted, constructed new beds, unrolled mattresses and moved lockers into the freshly made dormitories and community room. Over the weekend, a few Bowdoin students and several members of Topsham Boy Scout Troop 202 volunteered with Rotarians to kick-start the shelter renovations. Tedford Housing Director of Programs Giff Jamison said, “The care and hard work they put into painting and freshening up the adult shelter makes it a cheerier and nicer place for our guests to [live] as they work towards securing more permanent housing. It also sends a strong message to our guests that many people in [the] community understand that they have just as much right to clean and fresh surroundings, even in a temporary shelter, as do people who will never directly experience the hardship of not having a place to call home.”

The adult shelter renovations will remain a highlight of the year for Tedford Housing’s guests, and will still be appreciated by all of Tedford’s future guests for years to come. It is undoubtedly the support of the community that enabled this project to be completed. Tedford Housing recognizes the dutiful support of the Brunswick Coastal Rotary, and is grateful to have the ability to provide a fresh, clean environment for their guests, during a pandemic nonetheless.

For more information on the shelter renovations, please visit Tedford Housing’s Facebook or Instagram @TedfordHousing, or visit our website at www.tedfordhousing.org.–

Giving Voice: Homelessness in the southern Midcoast through the lens of COVID-19

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Giving Voice

This article was published in the Portland Press Herald on 07/03/2020 and is written by Giff Jamison, the Director of Programs at Tedford Housing.

As I write this in late June, we are entering our fifth month of the COVID-19 pandemic in Maine. Back in March, in response to the suddenness and increasing severity this national health crisis, Tedford Housing, like many other organizations serving people experiencing homelessness, began changing and adapting in order to adhere to the evolving social distancing guidelines and the Governor’s executive order to shelter safely at home. That month, to create more room in our shelter, we moved some guests into a motel. Our shelter, which traditionally had been closed between 8 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. on weekdays, is now open 24/7. By late May, enough people had transitioned into housing to allow us to bring everyone safely back into the shelter again. Normally 16 beds, we are capping our current capacity at 10 individuals – doing intakes as beds empty and guests move into housing. Our family shelter continues to serve our regular number of six families in individual apartments in our facility at Federal St.

So far, Tedford has been lucky in not having a shelter guest or any of its staff members test positive for COVID-19. But here, as everywhere else, adjusting to the often referred to “new normal” is challenging for everyone involved. Our overarching goal has always been to help people who have experienced the trauma and destabilizing impact of homelessness become housed as soon as possible. Prior to March, there were already enough hurdles for our case managers to manage in finding suitable affordable housing. Matching resources and the limited supply of affordable housing to the diverse needs of people on their case loads meant hours of telephone calls, in-person viewing of apartments and layers of paperwork to finalize the issuance of a voucher and lease-up of an apartment. COVID-19 brought another dimension to that work. As Michelle Thiboutot, our adult shelter case manager, puts it: “COVID-19 has slowed the housing process down. From processing documents for housing to securing a unit.”

In addition to working with folks in our shelters, Tedford case managers work with those who are homeless and unsheltered in the community and those in their own apartments who have recently experienced homelessness. This outreach work has grown in importance as we work to not only restore housing to those that have lost it, but, through regular check-ins and visits, help people maintain their housing and avoid a return to homelessness. The changes in society brought about by the pandemic, the need to socially distance from others, to avoid gatherings, and the closing or reduced hours of places where people can socialize or congregate have had their impact on households served in outreach or our supportive housing programs. Michelle indicates: “some of my outreach clients are having a really hard time due to the isolation and COVID-19 restrictions.” Actual fear of becoming infected with the virus, coupled with the restriction in connecting with natural supports has taken its toll on some of our families as Beverly McPhail, our family case manager, points out: “Their biggest worry is that their children will be infected or will die from the coronavirus. They miss visiting face to face with their family members, their anxiety has increased substantially. Some families reported that they feel like they are buried alive and always worrying about the ever-looming coronavirus over their head. The loss of their freedom and the loss of everything that they used to do before coronavirus is devastating to them.”

Despite the hardships and loss encountered as a result of COVID-19, we have learned that we can still accomplish our mission to Empower people to move from homelessness to home and alleviate the interruption to a life caused by homelessness. In the coming week or so, two more people are moving into housing from our adult shelter. They are both persons who have experienced homelessness for long periods of time but have stuck it out at the shelter and through their patience and the diligence of their case manager have secured safe and affordable permanent housing. This event always provides a little shot in the arm for those of us in this field. With the uncertainty that this era generates in our personal and working lives, it is good to know that we can share in a small victory every once in a while. Some offer predictions of more to come in the way of COVID-19 in the upcoming fall and winter season. We, together with our partners in the community, will continue to adapt to the current conditions and, to the best of ability, continue our effort to house the most vulnerable in our community.

Giving Voice: Housing people during COVID-19

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Giving Voice

The following article was published in The Times Record on 5/8/20 and written by Jennifer Iacovelli, Tedford Housing’s director of development.

A week into our second monthlong stay-at-home order, and it’s hard to get away from the news stories about COVID-19. It has affected our everyday life, personally and professionally, in a way that I’m not sure any of us were ever prepared. The articles from our Giving Voice column have illustrated how Tedford Housing, The Gathering Place, Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program and Oasis Free Clinics have reacted to and adjusted services to meet the needs of our community’s most vulnerable neighbors.

While we have all had to make changes in the way in which we work with our clients, we continue to offer much-needed programs and services. Even while practicing extreme social distancing, Tedford Housing’s overarching goal continues to be to find our clients safe, permanent housing. This feat can be challenging enough without a global pandemic, as our clients have many barriers to break through in the process of finding that pathway from homelessness to home.

We have shared that Tedford Housing’s buildings are closed to the public and staff are working from home as much as possible. Case managers are meeting with clients mostly via phone, email or text. Zoom is used from time to time, but only if the client has the capability of using such an application.

So how does this new, different way of working affect finding housing? For one thing, it slows the already slow process down. Tedford Housing staff aren’t the only ones working remotely. Landlords and property managers may not be in their offices and only checking their email or messages once/day or even once/week. Same thing with the offices that manage housing vouchers. In-person tours of a potential apartment are no longer happening during COVID-19, so everything is done via a camera, including inspections that are required by specific housing vouchers once an apartment is found. Vetting is much more difficult for both landlord and tenant when you lose the ability to be in the same room with a person.

As far as the case managers at our adult and family shelters go, it’s business as usual. They may not be in the office every day during the week, but they continue to work with clients to find apartments, fill out applications and guide our shelter guests through the many steps it takes to get to the point of signing a lease. One of our families moved into an apartment without seeing it first. Though it made the mom a bit uncomfortable, she talked with her case manager about how she could always look at other options in a year if she wasn’t happy with the apartment. The main goal was to move out of the shelter into permanent housing.

Two of what we call long term stayers in our adult shelter and one family in our family shelter have found housing during this difficult time. Being in the shelter for over 300 days, these individuals overcame some big obstacles to sign their leases with the help of their case manager. Moving has become particularly difficult because most of our clients rely on help from friends. With social distancing and restrictions on travel with people other than your household become a challenge. Our partners at Goodwill and Habitat for Humanity’s Restore are temporarily closed, which limits our ability to help clients access the household items they need to furnish their new apartment. We have to take extra precautions with volunteers who help sort and gather donations to fulfill clients’ moving checklists. Once in an apartment, our case managers then “follow” clients for up to 12 months to help ensure a smooth transition. Losing the personal touch of on-site meetings can be tough because you lose the cues that body language can give you if a person is having a hard time. Many of our clients are struggling with isolation, financial stresses and addiction, making it harder to keep people stable and supported via the telephone.

Tedford Housing is making it work during this pandemic, especially our case managers. We are happy to report that people are still being housed even if it takes a bit more time.

PO Box 958, Brunswick ME 04011